Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I came into office at the time of great difficulty because of the financial circumstances in which this country finds itself and against a background of a growing student population. I had to try to balance the concept of fairness and equity across the system. That I took the measure consciously in 2012, and gave notice of it for three years, of which this will be the last, was a signal to those schools in respect of how their pupil-teacher ratios would be altered. It involves multi-class arrangements in one room but that is the choice has been made by the school in that area. The capitation grant still assumes 60 pupils in those schools and that has not been touched. It is a considerable resource.

See this speech in context